To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many Parole Board dossiers were destroyed in each of the last 12 months; and on what criteria the decisions to authorise their destruction were based.

I am advised by the Parole Board that for the period between June 2007 and June 2008, 323 files were destroyed. It is normal practice for files for oral hearing cases to be destroyed after nine months from the date of the hearing unless further action has been initiated.